


Five times Ant And Dec Follow The Rules Of Their Non-Stereotypical Friendship And One Time They Don't

by orphan_account



Category: Ant & Dec RPF
Genre: 5+1 Things, Alternate Universe, Cuddling & Snuggling, Fights, Friends to Lovers, Homecoming, Hugs, M/M, Panic Attacks, Pure Smitten Boys, Sharing a Bed, Sickfic, but not really it's ant and dec after all
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-15
Updated: 2017-08-18
Packaged: 2018-12-15 21:55:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,567
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11814963
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: Five times Ant and Dec follow the rules of their non-stereotypical friendship and one time they don't.





	1. Hugs

**Author's Note:**

> back at it again bitches. yes i too wish i could write about something else. i literally had so much to say in here but now that im actually writing it i have no idea so just: ENJOY <3 
> 
> also lmao this is literally the longest title in existence.

He can hear his name being shouted the moment he gets to the arrival hall. The very next moment he’s being slammed into with the force of an elephant and Ant is literally screaming into his ear. 

“Man, calm down, will you? I’ve only been gone two weeks.” Dec’s laugh is a bit wheezy due to Ant squeezing him too hard for him to breathe.

He knows Ant would be there to greet him because they both always do that in those rare situations when the other is away, but this is definitely not what he expected. 

“Shut up, the longest two weeks of my life.” Ant mumbles before lifting him up and swirling him around. 

“Come on, cut it out, Ant,” Dec laughs again when Ant puts him back down. “Stop making a scene.”

There are quite a few people watching them now but Ant doesn’t really seem to care that much. He steps away at arm’s length and just looks at him for a moment. 

“You look good,” He says finally, smiling brightly, “You even got yourself a tan.”

Ant pokes Dec’s cheek with his finger. Dec can’t stop laughing. He’s so happy to be back. 

“Well, I had to get sunburnt first though.” 

“Of course you had.”

They grin at each other like idiots before Ant wraps his arms around him again. Dec loves hugging Ant, he always has. It makes him feel safe and loved and at home. He buries his head in Ant’s shoulder and breathes in the familiar scent of his cologne and cigarettes. He almost feels like crying because, shit he really missed Ant. It’s really scary how dependent they are on each other and how hard it is for them to spend even a week apart. 

“Come on, let’s get coffee,” Ant pulls off and tugs on his sleeve to get him to follow. He sees Dec is reluctant to go, so he rolls his eyes and adds, “It’s on me, how about that?”

Dec follows him right away. 

“So, how was the wedding?” Ant asks later when they are seated in a small café near the entrance. They contemplated going to Starbucks and getting their drinks quickly, but Dec can be a real posh prick when it comes to coffee so instead they’re waiting in the most expensive coffee shop in the building. Dec is grinning at him and oh, it was all on purpose because Ant is paying. Bastard. He’s lucky Ant loves him.

“I love Moira, I really do, but honestly, Italy? And in the middle of summer too?” Dec sighs, “Did you know you have to wear a full suit there? With long sleeves and everything? I thought I would sweat out like two sizes in there!”

“You could use that actually. I never had a problem lifting you up before.” Ant teases but regrets it quickly though after Dec pinches him on the arm. He sticks his tongue out at him. 

“I missed you,” Ant says after a bit of silence, smiling at him softly. Dec hides his face in his cup. It’s not very common for Ant to be this affectionate and talk about his feelings and Dec isn’t quite sure how to handle it. 

“So, you’re the last one in line now, aye? When are _you_ gonna settle down, man?” Ant asks after a while, their coffee almost gone and their mood much brighter after spending some time catching up. He ignores the little twinge in his heart at his own question.

“I’ve still got time, alright? Just… waiting for the right person,” Dec avoids his gaze, suddenly embarrassed. Ant doesn’t seem to notice, not looking at him either for similar reasons. “Like you’re any better.”

Ant doesn’t really have an answer that doesn’t involve coming to terms with his feelings of 15 years, so he keeps silent.

The drive back home is quiet, but comfortably so. Dec loves how they’re able to just sit together, without the need to talk, both lost in thought and it’s not awkward at all. Dec feels an overwhelming wave of exhaustion, the tiredness settling itself into his bones as he stares out of the window of the car. It starts to rain and Dec never thought he would say it, but he missed London, its weather, and the never dimming lights. He loved Italy, he really did, but he felt strangely homesick, even surrounded by his family. 

It also feels good to be able to understand more than around three words of the local language. Well, mostly at least, it’s London after all. The sound of the radio and the raindrops falling onto the windows in the background almost lull him to sleep.

Ant steals a look on Dec from time to time, taking him all in. He’s filled with a weird kind of happiness and content. He can’t quite put his finger on it. Deep down, he knows what these feelings are, but he’s not anywhere close to acknowledging them, so he pushes them away. He isn’t about to go around confessing his feelings and destroying their friendship.

They arrive back home sometime later.

Dec is dragging his suitcase to his room, ready to drape himself across the nearest piece of furniture and just fall asleep, when he feels a tap on his shoulder. He turns around and Ant wraps his arms around him again. It isn’t uncommon for them to hug, but Dec is still a bit surprised. Ant really must have missed him. Dec finds it heartwarming. He squeezes Ant back tightly, taking it all in. The dimmed lights in their hallway, the smell of detergent on Ant’s clothes, the way Ant’s hair tickles his neck. Dec smiles. 

He never really believed in the whole ‘your home is where your heart is’ thing, but he’s ready to change his mind at this very moment. His heart is with Ant, as much as Dec would like to deny it and he’s always going to feel homesick, whenever Ant is not with him. 

“I missed you too.” Ant hasn’t actually said the words but he didn’t need to. Dec feels it in the way he’s holding him and his hands are clutching at his back. His home is with Ant, Dec decides when they pull back and he’s ready to accept that.


	2. Cuddling

“You’ll be cold.” Dec tells him, looking doubtfully at Ant’s light sweater. 

“No, I won’t. I’m too hot for that.” Ant winks at him. Dec rolls his eyes, which is not necessarily the reaction Ant would like to get so he gets back to tying his shoes up.

Dec rolls his eyes again multiple times that night, particularly every time Ant shivers. Ant being the stubborn ass that he is, never admits Dec is right and to prove his point, takes all of his drinks with double ice, Dec glaring at him all the while. 

“Are you daft, man? You’ll get sick. It’s October, for god’s sake!” Dec can’t stop himself from commenting as Ant buys himself ice-cream while they’re walking back home. And he bought himself chocolate ice-cream of all things, which is the stupidest thing to do and doesn’t in any way improve Dec’s mood. 

“No, I won’t. You need to stop mothering me, Dec. I’m a grown man, I can handle myself.” Ant retorts, eating his ice-cream not as happily now as a few moments before. 

“Well, you say you’re a grown man, but you’re acting like a baby.” Dec gets the last word per usual but lets it drop after that. He stares at the pavement they’re walking on thinking through what Ant said. There are a few cigarette butts and old chewing gums stuck to it. Maybe Ant is right, he shouldn’t try to control him like that even though he is being stupid. He looks up at Ant and smiles. He bumps his shoulder into Ant’s as a peace offering. He looks up from his ice-cream and smiles back at him. Dec relaxes a bit, enjoying the rest of their stroll. He still feels a prickle of irritation as he sees the cone in Ant’s hand but he takes a deep breath and lets the chilly wind on his skin calm him down. 

Ant gets sick two days later. 

Dec leans against the door frame of Ant’s room, watching his shivering form. 

“Don’t say a word,” Ant warns, voice incredibly raspy as he basically coughs his lungs out. He’s bundled up under the covers, only his eyes and a sweaty forehead poking out. “It wasn’t the ice-cream, yeah? Someone must’ve coughed on me.”

Dec just raises his eyebrows at him and without a word goes to grab some Theraflu from the kitchen. 

“Drink it, you idiot,” Dec puts his hand on Ant’s forehead, checking his fever. He is burning up. Dec tries to fight the twinge of worry he feels. “Do you want me to make you a soup or something?” 

Ant glares at him, but nods. Normally, he would remind Dec of his cooking skills and say he’d rather live another day without a burnt flat, but he bites his tongue. He knows he can’t shoot his mouth off now. He sits up and takes the cup from Dec. He starts glaring at the Theraflu instead. The yellowy liquid remains unfazed, stirring slowly in the cup. Ant chugs it quickly, just to get it over with and washes it down with the water Dec passes him. 

“God, that’s disgusting.” Ant winces. He wipes his mouth and lies back down, bringing the cover over his head. He can still hear Dec’s sigh through it. 

“Shut up.” He mumbles, before launching into another coughing fit. 

Dec wants to comfort Ant so badly in that moment, he hates seeing his friend in such discomfort but he squishes the urge down. He’s angry with him and Ant brought it upon himself by being stubborn and stupid. Dec shouldn’t have a reason to feel sorry for him. 

He still brings him soup in a little container half an hour later. Ant is sleeping, his brow furrowed and sweaty. Dec takes a second to take in his red cheeks and damp hair, before shaking him gently.

“Come on, I’m not going to feed you,” He says, still acting cranky but deep down he knows he’s fighting a lost battle. He never can stay angry at Ant for long, especially with him sick. His voice softens, “Come on, it’ll make you feel better.”

Ant blinks up at him groggily. It’s so adorable Dec loses the last traces of his anger. Ant sits up on the bed and takes the soup and a spoon from Dec. He opens the lid, basking in the warmth and the smell of broth. Well, probably not that much smell as Ant is breathing through his mouth and sniffling from time to time.

“I ordered it,” Dec explains, “Figured we’d rather live another day without a burnt flat.”

It startles a raspy laugh out of Ant but it’s short-lived, his throat hurts too much for that. He starts eating his soup instead. He already looks a little better, but Dec knows it’s deceiving. It will take Ant another couple of days to get back up on his feet. Dec gets back to the kitchen and makes Ant a cup of steaming tea. He takes some medicine with him, just in case. By the time he comes back, Ant is finished with the broth. He looks quite worn out, dark circles under his bloodshot eyes. It breaks Dec’s heart a little. He sets the cup on the bedside table.

He puts his hand on Ant’s forehead who leans into Dec’s cold palm.

“You’re burning up,” Dec feels a bit stupid for stating the obvious like that. “Does your throat hurt?”

“A bit, yeah.” Ant nods and true enough, Dec can see how hard it is for him to even swallow. There's not much he can really do about it though. He makes a quick decision in his mind. He starts climbing into the bed next to Ant. 

“What are you doing?” Ant protests, coughing. He looks doubtful but he lifts the covers up for Dec anyway.

“Shut up,” Ant can’t argue with such compelling arguments. Dec wraps his arms around Ant and mumbles into his hair sheepishly, “I read cuddling strengthens the immune system.”

“Did you now?” Ant grins, more than happy they aren’t fighting anymore. That alone almost heals him instantly. Almost. “Admit it’s just because you can’t keep your hands off of me.”

“Shut up.” Dec repeats but doesn’t deny it. He rests his chin on top of Ant’s head. Ant wraps his arms around Dec’s middle and burrows his face in his neck. He listens to Ant’s raspy breathing but instead of annoying him, it calms him down somehow. 

“You shouldn’t actually hug me, you know that, right?” Ant mumbles after some time. Dec opens one eye and peeks at the top of his head. 

“Why not?” Dec asks, already sleepy, the warmth of the room and Ant’s embrace showing its signs. 

“You’ll get sick.” Ant explains, but he burrows further into Dec nevertheless. Dec smiles.

“I’m a grown man, I can handle myself.” He repeats Ant’s words from just a few days ago. Ant smiles and squeezes Dec’s middle, acknowledging the joke and closes his eyes again. He drifts off into a peaceful sleep, happily cuddling with Dec, already forgetting about his own fever and cough. 

Dec gets sick two days later.


	3. Bed Sharing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi

It’s the middle of the night when Ant suddenly wakes up. He lifts his head up from the pillow, blinking the sleep away. He sits up, rubbing his eyes. He isn’t exactly sure why he’s awake. He can’t remember what he was dreaming about, but it definitely wasn’t a nightmare. He gazes around the dark room a bit, looking for a source of his problem. There’s some light pouring in from the lamp outside, making weird shadows dance on his walls. Definitely not that. He sees it every night, sometimes even looks for different shapes they make when he can’t sleep. A dog is barking somewhere in the distance. Ant thinks it might be Cesar, the nicest German Shepard that lives around the corner with an old lady. She brings them cookies sometimes and in return, they take care of Cesar when she has to go to the hospital every few months or so. Ant knows from experience Cesar gets excited very easily, so Ant is used to him barking at night. He considers lying back down and blaming it on some sort of a weird coincidence, a full moon or the star aligning parallel to each other or some other space stuff.

Then he hears it. Ragged breaths and crying. He thanks himself for always sleeping with an opened door as he bolts out of his bedroom. He’s by Dec’s door in an instant. He doesn’t even have time to think, all of his thoughts gone, replaced by the need to help his friend. He knocks softly and opens the door. He finds Dec curled up in the far corner of the room, knees brought up to his chin. There are ugly sobs tearing themselves out of his chest. He’s covered in a sheet of sweat, shaking like a leaf.

“Dec,” Ant whispers, slowly making his way towards him. Dec lifts his head up, eyes puffy. He’s choking with tears. Ant kneels next to him, making sure Dec can see his every move. He doesn’t want to frighten him further. “What do you need?”

“To calm down.” Dec manages to say, even though barely and it’s almost incomprehensible. He looks at him and there’s so much fear in his eyes Ant’s heart clenches. It pains him to see his best friend like this, scared and in visible pain.

“Okay, you can do this, Decky, yeah?” Ant sits down close, careful not to actually touch him. He has no idea what’s he’s doing but he hopes it’s at least going to help. “Breathe with me. I’m going to count to ten. Focus on me and my breathing. Can you do that for me?”

He starts inhaling and exhaling loudly and slowly through his mouth, counting after every breath. He waits for Dec to follow him who complies after a while. His breathing starts to even out slowly, but surely. 

“You’re doing great, love, you can get through this. I know you’re scared, but you’re safe, okay? You’re in your room and I’m right here, I’m not going anywhere. You’re safe, you aren’t in danger, everything is okay. ”

Dec nods. He seems calmer, but Ant isn’t sure if it’s over yet. There are still tears running down his cheeks. Ant thinks that someone as beautiful and kind as Dec should never have to cry. He tries to remember all the articles about panic attacks he has read and thinks of anything else to say.

“Can I touch you?” He asks and when he gets a permission in a form of another nod, he takes Dec’s hands and lifts them from where they are clutching his knees. He gives them a little squeeze as a reassurance and lets go. “Keep lifting your arms above your head slowly. Focus on that alright? Just, uh, focus on the present.”

It feels almost lame to say something like that but it seems to help as Dec closes his eyes and starts the exercise. Ant continues counting for him, trying his best to ground him and give him a sense of safety. It takes some time but eventually Dec gets tired and rests his head against the wall. It seems to be over. The attack really must have worn him out. His breathing is back to normal, thankfully but Ant still makes sure Dec hears him as he shuffles closer and waits a few seconds before hugging him. 

“Thank you.” Dec whispers, later on, his head on Ant’s shoulder. Panic attacks are not something he experiences often, but Ant still makes sure to be ready when they happen. He knows how much feeling is hidden behind that simple ‘thank you’. The gratitude towards Ant, for always being there for him to help him through the attacks, for always understanding and asking him what he needs, for being such an amazing friend. Dec feels he could write a ten thousand word poem and it still wouldn’t be enough to show Ant how much he loves him. It’s still reassuring to know Ant understands all of this and Dec doesn’t have to explain it.

“Of course,” Ant whispers back, kissing the top of his head. They sit together in silence again, comfortably propped up against each other, before he asks softly, “What happened?”

“I don’t know,” Dec answers, sighing. He wipes some of the dried tears off of his face. “One second everything was fine and the next I couldn’t breathe, thinking I was dying or going crazy. Maybe all of the stress lately, I don’t know. I don’t even want to think about it.”

“It’s alright now, okay?” Ant rubs his arm reassuringly. He knows Dec isn’t lying to him or avoiding the answer, so he lets the subject drop. “You should get some sleep.”

He untangles himself from Dec and gets up. Dec looks up at him, squinting at the harsh light above. He sighs and gets onto his feet. He starts making his way towards the bed. Ant looks at the door reluctantly, not wanting to leave but willing to give Dec some space if he needs it. Dec stops in his tracks suddenly, as if remembering Ant is still here.

“Can you stay?” Dec turns towards him. “I don’t really want to be alone right now.”

Ant smiles at him and nods. Dec relaxes visibly, smiling back at him. It’s a much better look on him than tears, Ant decides. He turns off the light and they lie down together. Normally, Dec would never let him be the big spoon because he’s a control freak like that, but tonight he needs to be held. He doesn’t protest when Ant wraps his arms around him and hides his face in his hair. Ant feels Dec interlock their hands where they are resting on his chest. He smiles into his neck. He’s dozing off again, surrounded by the feeling of love and warmth when Dec speaks up again. 

“I’m sorry.” He whispers into the dark. Ant opens his eyes and leans away a little to look at the back of his head.

“What are you sorry for?” He asks, confused. 

“Panicking?” It’s more like a question rather than an answer.

“Hey, idiot, look at me,” It’s too dark for them to see each other, but Ant waits until Dec turns around anyway. “You have nothing to apologise for, you know that? It’s beyond your control, it’s not your fault that it happens. And I’m your friend, aren’t I? I’m in for the good and the bad. It’s mostly good with you anyway, so don’t worry, I’m not going anywhere.”

He can almost feel the brightness of Dec’s smile. He turns fully towards Ant and wraps his arms around his chest. Ant rests his chin on Dec’s head and with that, they both fall asleep, curled up around each other, confident with the knowledge of each other’s love and support.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> bye


End file.
